Chairs, furniture and other articles typically include rigid panels which may serve various purposes. For example, many chairs are constructed of seat and backrest panels which are formed or molded substrates onto which a padded composite structure is attached. The chair panels are designed to support the weight of an occupant of the chair with the foam padding being used to provide comfort to the occupant. However, such panels are often bulky and can significantly increase the chair's overall weight while decreasing the chair's stacking and storage density. Solid surface chair panels also provide very little breathability, which contributes negatively to the comfort of the occupant.
Furniture such as dressers and so-called “entertaiment centers” are usually constructed of wood panels having a laminated or varnished exterior finish. These wood panels add tremendous weight to the furniture. Additionally, wood finishes are notoriously susceptible to damage. Most wood furniture panels are not designed to be easily removed and replaced with a new and undamaged panel, so the furniture's wood finish must be maintained in order to keep an aesthetically pleasing appearance.
One approach to resolving the disadvantages of prior art chair panels has been to provide a single-layer elastic membrane that is pre-stretched and mounted to a molded frame. However, the manufacture of such a chair is tremendously complicated and requires a very large molding machine. Also, the structural support and user comfort exhibited by the pre-stretched membranes has been found lacking.
A panel that overcomes problems and disadvantages associated with prior art panels was disclosed in our U.S. Pat. No. 6,886,890. This panel, however, requires a closed-loop frame which must be inserted into an envelope of resilient material having an opening and a fastener that are both substantially equal in size to a side of the closed-loop frame. Because the periphery of the envelope urges against the frame, manufacturing the panel with the closed-loop frame is difficult, time consuming, and costly. In addition, the use of a fastener adds cost and detracts from the aesthetics of the panel. What is needed, therefore, is a panel that overcomes the manufacturing problems and aesthetic concerns associated with the current panel. None of the prior art, alone or in combination, renders the subject matter of the present invention obvious.